Harrogate in Bloom

Hanami is the Japanese traditional custom of enjoying the transient beauty of flowers. Harrogate’s cherry blossom provides our town with our own opportunity to enjoy the fleeting beauty of these beautiful blooms.
The arrival of the cherry blossom has been enjoyed ever since 100 double-flowering cherry trees were planted along two avenues across the Stray to mark Queen Elizabeth II’s coronation in 1953.
Hundreds of visitors of many nationalities come to Harrogate each year to enjoy a stroll beneath the cherry trees, to take photographs and appreciate their beauty. Harrogate is now considered to be one of the UK’s cherry blossom hotspots.
The blossoms last for just a short time, but their impact is long-lasting.

In 2025 Harrogate will once again be representing Yorkshire in Bloom in the RHS Britain in Bloom Competition in the UK Finals in the Small City & City category to be judged between 28 July - 15 August 2025.

Our beautiful town has an illustrious history of winning gold medals in both Yorkshire and Britain in Bloom and is a double winner of Europe in Bloom.

Four groups, Yorkshire Air Ambulance, Ripon Walled Garden, Pateley Bridge Mayor's Appeal and Harrogate in Bloom, were all recipients of generous donations from the Harrogate MG and Classic Car club on 4th December. The donation of £250 was received by Chris Beard on behalf of Harrogate in Bloom.

Harrogate in Bloom once again received a GOLD award at the Yorkshire in Bloom Awards in Tadcaster and were Category Winners in the small city category. The judges said: " It was clear that the accolades that Harrogate have been awarded in the past have been well earned over a number of years and are truly deserved, showing that “the power of flower” reigns supreme in Harrogate"

Harrogate Business Improvement District also received a GOLD award and were the Category Winners in the BID / Town / City Centre category. Harrogate in Bloom together with Harrogate BID also took home the 2024 Yorkshire Rose Discretionary prize for the Best Entry Supporting Tourism.

There was lots of success across the Harrogate District. Well done everyone! The details are given in the Full article.

The West Park Hotel once again hosted our 2024 Awards Evening to celebrate the floral contributions made by local schools, businesses and community groups to our beautiful town.
The event was organised in collaboration with Harrogate BiD; Nick Smith, Director of Harrogate Flower Shows, was our compere for the evening and Phil Airey, Manager of Horticap, who are celebrating their 40th Anniversary this year, presented the awards.
Full details of all our award winners can be found on our Competitions page.

Yorkshire in Bloom judges visited the Valley Gardens today to begin this year's judging in Harrogate. They were accompanied by Kate Dawson and Kirsty Stewart from North Yorkshire Council, Chris Beard from Harrogate in Bloom and members of the Friends of Valley Gardens.

The judges will be back in Harrogate on Friday 19th July to judge Harrogate in Bloom across the town and Harrogate Business Improvement District in the town centre. Let's hope we WOW them with our blooming marvellous town. The results will be announced at the Yorkshire in Bloom Awards Ceremony later in the year.

The Harrogate BID team, working in partnership with Harrogate in Bloom, have launched this year’s Floral Shop Window Competition, encouraging local businesses to celebrate our town’s floral heritage. The competition will run alongside this year’s Floral Summer of Celebration, which has a theme of Friendship.

You are warmly invited to the Harrogate Spring Flower Show Charity Breakfast, to be held from 8:00am on Friday 26 April 2024 in the President’s Pavilion at the Spring Show. The event is in aid of Harrogate in Bloom.
Tickets to this exclusive event cost £60 per person and include: -
• Special entry to the showground
• VIP parking
• Buck’s Fizz Breakfast
• Short briefing on Harrogate in Bloom
• Exclusive access to the Show prior to public opening at 9.30am.

We do hope you are able to join us in support of Harrogate in Bloom.

Horticap Patron, Alan Titchmarsh; National Allotment Society President, Phil Gomersall; Andrew Jones MP; BBC presenter, Amanda Harper and His Majesty’s Lord Lieutenant of North Yorkshire, Mrs Jo Ropner, joined students, staff, volunteers, families and friends to celebrate the 40th Anniversary of Horticap and the excellent achievements of their students. The event celebrated the warmth, caring and joy of this amazing charity highlighting the power of horticulture.

Our 2024 Bloom Awards have been launched. These include the Children's Art Competition, the Harrogate in Bloom Awards and the School Garden Competition.
Harrogate in Bloom is delighted by all the floral contributions made in our town, so if you're proud of your horticultural achievements we invite you to enter our 2024 competitions.
Full details and entry forms can be found on our Competitions page.